The global expansion of videogames. Risks of corporate concentration
in the era of digital capitalism
La expansión global de los videojuegos. Riesgos de la concentración corporativa
en la era del capitalismo digital
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nº 36, pp. 273-289
| 273
January-June of 2022
ISSN: 1696-019X / e-ISSN: 2386-3978
How to cite this article:
Bárcenas Curtis., C. (2023). e global expansion of videogames. Risks of corporate concentration in the era of digital capitalism.
Doxa
Comunicación
, 36, pp. 273-289.
https://doi.org/10.31921/doxacom.n36a1710
César Bárcenas Curtis.
PhD in Political and Social Science, specialized in Communication, by the Universidad Nacio
-
nal Autónoma de México. Member of the
Sistema Nacional de Investigadores
(National System of Researchers, SNI),
with a Level 1. Professor at the Social Science and Law School of the
Universidad Autónoma de Tamaulipas
. He recently
published the books: “
Indice de potencialidad de las industrias culturales y creativas en Tamaulipas. Un análisis desde
el marco regional
” (Potentiality Index for the Cultural and Creative Industries in Tamaulipas. An Analysis from the Re
-
gional Framework), and “
El apagón analógico en México: Oportunidades y riesgos para las políticas de comunicación de
servicio público ante la transición a la televisión digital terrestre
” (e Analog Shutdown in México: Opportunities and
Risks for the Public Service Communication Policies in Front of the Transition towards Digital Terrestrial Television”,
works from which the main contributions are the opening and development of a discussion in the context of techno
-
logical transition, as well as, building and consolidating a line of research regarding cultural and creative industries in
Mexico, in the context of digital convergence and transmedia environments.
s.
Universidad Autónoma de Tamaulipas, Mexico
[email protected]
ORCID: 0000-0001-6724-6492
Abstract:
e relevance of the economic aspect of the video game industry is
developed from a series of processes of concentration of corporations
specialized in information and communication technologies.
ese companies work from a capitalist logic where they dominate,
control and direct the dierent creative stages of the design and
commercialization
.
e main objective of this essay is identify the
processes of concentration and integration of the video game industry
in a global way, with the intention of establishing some characteristics
of this industry in the processes of digital capitalism. erefore, the
main objective of this essay is to establish the characteristics of the
video game industry in the processes of digital capitalism, from its
processes of concentration and integration. e main observations
Resumen:
La relevancia del aspecto económico de la industria de los videojue
-
gos se desarrolla a partir de una serie de procesos de concentración de
corporativos especializados en las tecnologías de la información y la
comunicación. Estas empresas trabajan a partir de una lógica capita
-
lista donde dominan, controlan y dirigen las distintas etapas creativas
del diseño y comercialización de éstos. Tomando en cuenta lo anterior,
el objetivo principal de este es ensayo es establecer algunas de las ca
-
racterísticas de la industria de los videojuegos en los procesos del ca
-
pitalismo digital, a partir de sus procesos de concentración e integra
-
ción. Las principales observaciones se encuentran relacionadas con
los modelos de negocios de los grandes corporativos para desarrollar
y comercializar videojuegos, al utilizar estrategias para evitar riesgos
Received: 01/06/2022 - Accepted: 16/11/2022 - Early access: 22/11/2022 - Published: 01/01/2023
Recibido: 01/06/2022 - Aceptado: 16/11/2022 - En edición: 22/11/2022 - Publicado: 01/01/2023
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1. Introduction
In 2021, the global revenue for the videogame industry amounted an approximate of 93 billion USD in the mobile devices market.
Additionally, the use of consoles added another 50 billion USD and, lastly, computer games generated 36.7 billion USD (Clement,
2022). It is important to highlight that the videogame industry obtains this income from 3 main sources: 1)
Hardware
(consoles,
processors, monitors, controllers, and other accessories); 2)
Software
(videogame purchases), and 3) Online gaming services.
Currently, videogames create, globally, more revenue than movie theaters, which received 21 billion USD (Navarro, 2022). However,
it is important to point out that this data requires a further exhaustive review on the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic in the movie
exhibition around the world.
e growth in the economical aspect of the videogame industry was related to -initially- the concentration processes previously
used by the lm industry. In this context, Disney is one of the most emblematic examples, since it maintains a presence in dierent
cultural industries, such as television, movies, and others. (Wasko, 2017). In the digital context, the evolution and organization
of the cultural industries has been increased by a series of corporations dedicated to the development of information and
communication technologies. Companies such as Microsoft, Nintendo, Sony, among others, function from a capitalist logic, in
which they domain, control and direct the dierent stages that go from the conception of creative ideas, to the production and
distribution of the products (Trenta, 2018). Similarly, in the presence of a series of economical, technological, and specially, cultural
interrelations and interactions, there is a corporate tendency in the videogame industry to show a prevalence of oligopolies with
enough resources to carry out
marketing
and promotional advertising campaigns (Moriset & Miège, 2005).
For instance,
Halo
, the television series produced by Microsoft and released on March 2022 in the platform Paramount +, is
based on the universe of the videogame with the same name, which represents one of the most important content of the Xbox
console, developed and marketed also by Microsoft. In this case, it can be observed that the business model based on the digital
distribution, in which the dierent consoles have Internet connectivity, is no longer enough (Trenta, 2014: 350). Hence, now is in
use a model where the game and console developer is involved in the production of lms or television series, a situation similar to
the
streaming
platforms. To give an example, Netix produces its own content, which markets in and adds value to its own platform
are related to the business models of large corporations to develop
and market video games, using strategies to avoid risks and generate
eective monetization processes. Likewise, the practice of video
games is redening consumption habits where the intensive use of the
mobile phone to play that generates new cultural practices. Cultural
and creative industries evolve continuously and permanently, so the
expansion of the video game industry has reached a level of planetary
hegemony in technological and economic terms and enables the
development of new agencies.
Keywords:
Concentration; cultural and creative industries; digital convergence;
digital capitalism; videogames
.
y generar procesos de monetización efectivos. Asimismo, la práctica
de los videojuegos está redeniendo hábitos de consumo donde pre
-
domina el uso intensivo del teléfono móvil para jugar, lo que genera
nuevos fenómenos culturales. En este caso, las industrias culturales y
creativas evolucionan de manera continua y permanente, por lo que
la expansión de los videojuegos ha alcanzado un nivel de hegemonía
planetaria en términos tecnológicos y económicos posibilitando el de
-
sarrollo de nuevas agencias.
Palabras clave:
Capitalismo digital; concentración; convergencia digital; industria cul
-
tural; videojuegos.
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(Heredia, 2017). In this context, the permanent interactions between the videogame and lm industries are being reoriented to
create business and
marketing
strategies, to exploit the content in the dierent
streaming
platforms and maximize the value and
popularity of the dierent videogame franchises (Brookey, 2010).
Halo
is an example on how a series of interactions between dierent cultural industries is established; this series of interactions
generate, from a franchise, a structure for production, distribution and consumption of content, based on the “accumulation and
concentration”. From this phenomenon, it can be observed that digital convergence has a fundamental role: the capitalization,
marketing, and expansion, developed by technological and media corporations (Knoche, 2021). In this sense, the digital
convergence, being a process that includes 3 levels –1) Cultural Convergence; 2) Communication Systems Convergence; 3)
Corporate Convergence–, as Murdock (2000) points out, oers a content in a dierent moment and space, transforming social
relations in terms of production and reproduction of capital (Lefevbre, 1979).
is convergence, integration and expansion processes, from the technological interoperability and infrastructure of the Internet,
allow companies such as Microsoft or Apple, to oer services and access in dierent devices (Birkinbine, 2017: 390). e creation
of platforms for
streaming
such as Apple TV or, in the case of the Xbox console, online gaming, reinforce and expand the range of
commercial hegemony and operation for the technological operators to a global level. Videogames produced and distributed by
Sony Computer Entertainment, Tencent Holdings Limited, Microsoft and Nintendo Company are part of such phenomenon.
In appearance, the dynamics of cultural industries are based on a concentration and integration process that consolidates
the capitalist production system (Hesmondhalgh, 2008: 553). Consequently, the theoretical analysis of such transformation
processes in the cultural industries -through the years- has had a series of approaches, as pointed out by Miège (2011). At the
beginning, from the Frankfurt School perspective, in which cultural goods are produced from an industrial structure dened by
the consumption of standardized content, which completely contrasts with what a work of art stands for (Horkheimer & Adorno,
2006). After this, the American School perspective, by Schiller (1997) and Smythe (1997), analyzed the expansion and intersection
of telecommunications sector, the media markets and the cultural industries, in which a corporate concentration and dominance
is observed, dened by the transnationalization of informational and cultural content.
From the approach based on the information society, characterized by the prevalence of new technologies as a foundation for
the economic development and growth, conceptual bases for the creative industries sustained in intellectual property were
established (Garnham, 2005). e conceptual setting for the information society or network society is dened from a social
structure in which the production and consumption relations are based and developed from digital technologies (Castells, 2009).
Hence, a series of risks is established, related to the corporate expansion of telecommunication, software and content platforms
operators (Bustamante, 2009).
In 1997, the conceptual transition was expressed in a document by the British Labour Party (Labour Party, 1997), in which the
term cultural industries was replaced with creative industries, bringing along ideological and political implications, by giving
preponderance to innovation over culture. At the same time, according to Zallo (2011), a series of debates were established regarding
the attributions and characteristics of creative industries, which include activities such as design, architecture, advertising, fashion,
arts, handcrafting, antiques, performing arts, software and videogames. In this case, the risk is to “subsume and dilute” culture in
the terms of innovation and creativity.
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From this context, the main goal for the present essay is to identify some of the processes of corporate concentration and integration
of the global videogame industry. erefore, the intention is to set up a series of main characteristics for this industry in the
context of digital capitalism, which becomes transverse by dening and establishing processes that are “nancial, organizational,
computerized, cultural, and communicational” (Zallo, 2011: 165). Simultaneously, it is proposed a conceptual review on the
dierences between the notions of cultural industry, cultural industries and creative industries, with the intention of identifying
some of the theoretical features on the cultural and symbolic production. To begin with, as a hypothesis, it is possible to point out
that theoretical relations between cultural industries and creative industries are being altered, even though is important also to
highlight that these reformulations might be scientically inaccurate.
e scientic statute and the usefulness of the terms “creative economy” and “creative industries” are subject to discussion. ese
concepts are unstable, inaccurate, inconsistent and ideologically instrumentalized, in contrast with the clear statute of “cultural
economics” or the classic concept of “cultural industries,” particularly from a critical conception of both (Zallo, 2011: 158).
2. Cultural Industries vs. Creative Industries
e conceptual evolution of the term cultural industry is traceable from the approach of the critical theory belonging to the
Frankfurt School, that mainly questions the submission of the culture to the precepts of capitalist development (Castro, 2016). In
agreement with Szpilbarg & Saferstein (2014), among the referents of this school of thought are authors such as Hegel, Marx, Weber
& Freud, whose works and theories allow to set up the analysis and deliberate about historical materialism and the power relations
developed by the capitalist bourgeoisie.
In a turbulent and convulse social context due to World War II, during which the Nazism, Stalinism and Economic Rationalism
were present, Benjamín (2006) observed that the power relations of culture production were transformed. For instance, to Frankfurt
school theoreticians, one of this features was observed once the mechanical reproduction eliminates the “aura” of the work of art,
therefore provoking the disappearance of its authenticity, since vast quantities of copies are produced, such as the case of lms.
Hence, the only value from a work of art, which is founded on a ritual that represents the original use value, disappears when it is
reproduced in an indenite and continuous form. Besides, Horkheimer & Adorno (2006), in reference to the topic of mass culture,
questioned the development of a capitalist culture based in power structures that develop standardized consumer products that
are accepted without much opposition.
From this critical approach, it is emphasized that the works derived from a cultural industry, as in the case of lms, which are
reproduced through technological media, establish an economical and ideological power over a mass society subjected to the
capital axis. In this line of though, the consumers of products from cultural industry are exposed to expressions that enslave them
and oer a ctional paradise. In this sense, the transformation of culture into a commodity requires and uses advertising as an
“elixir” to guide the consumer in the market, therefore achieving a more ecient process for capitalism. As from this phenomena,
Frankfurt School dened cultural industry as a process of culture industrialization by means of a series of commercial imperatives
that allow an ecient way to sustain the production system (Kellner & Durham, 2006).
Now, during the 20th Century, the conceptual transition from cultural industry towards the notion of cultural industries was built
from an analytic approach, based on its value and importance for the strategies of political and economic order proposed by
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international organizations such as the UNESCO. In this case, forty years after the end of World War II, a series of technological
innovations have been developed, including new processes related with computing and the recording and reproduction formats
for content, that modied the production processes in the press, lms, music, television and the emergence of the video format
(UNESCO, 1982).
[...] certain new modalities, in full growth, for the use of computing, have by themselves given birth to new types of messages, new
relations between “senders” and “receivers”, and new socioeconomic and sociocultural balances between those who hold the power
strings and the huge mass formed by those towards whom the industrialized culture products are distributed, either with a focus on
a short term economical prot (population as market) or with the intention of political and social control (population as opinion)
(UNESCO, 1982: 10).
In this case, the interactions between the cultural, economic and technological development became closer by means of placing a
greater value and better dimensioning the importance of media as a space to transmit cultural expressions that include and reect
dierent views of the world. From the cultural industries standpoint, it is proposed that ideas and values of certain content showed
in the media not only have the capacity of generating a prot, but also can be turned into “cultural alienation,” since it goes against
the identity of communities, peoples and citizens in general.
Hence, establishing cultural and communication policies to protect national and regional cultures became one of the challenges
of research regarding cultural industries. In this sense, the research objectives begun to orientate towards a series of denitions
regarding the production, distribution, and marketing phases, specically to evaluate the forms in which they are funded,
protability, competence, etcetera, in order to know rsthand the conditions of national cultural industries in front of the pressure
of a culture developed and dened by cultural production capitalist companies.
It is estimated that, in general, a cultural industry exists when cultural goods and services are produced, reproduced, preserved and
distributed by commercial and industrial criteria, this is, serially and applying economical strategies, instead of looking for a cultural
development purpose (UNESCO, 1982: 21).
From this perspective, the vision of cultural industries held by the UNESCO, gives a fundamental weight to the cultural policies for
cultural, social and educational development, and, at the same time, boots the creation of protection mechanisms for the cultural
economies of developing countries (Carrasco & Saperas, 2012). In this context, tensions related with the artistic creation protection
started to become a main topic of discussion for the promotion of the cultural expressions and the problems surrounding it, which
include jobs, fair wages for the artists and the new relations generated by the employment of new technologies, among others.
e concept of cultural industries began to contemplate topics related to creation, in which the production of goods and services
“combines the creation, production and marketing of copyright protected content” (UNCTAD, 2008). In this case, creativity started
to represent the possibility of accessing information and knowledge with the intention of economic growth and promote the
development of globalization processes for cultural products. e creative discourse started to take shape from setting of ideas
to develop new cultural products and technological and scientic innovations to promote the ventures and productivity with the
main goal of generating income.
Governments of countries such as Australia and the United Kingdom, at the beginning of 1990, started the adoption of cultural
policies based on the paradigm of creative industries, as per Castro (2016), by emphasizing the economic value of culture from
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a perspective where it is proposed that it should generate wealth through “innovation, marketing and design.” In the case of the
UK government, it was used as a conceptual reference the information society and the knowledge to establish a series of policies
based on the creativity and intellectual property, therefore consolidating these guidelines from the transformations of cultural
expressions in its production and reception at the digital convergence.
Creative industries can be dened as the cycles of creation, production and distribution of goods and services that use creativity
and intellectual capital as primary inputs. ey comprise a group of activities based on knowledge, that produce tangible goods and
intangible intellectual or artistic services with creative content, economic value and market objectives (UNCTAD, 2008: 4).
From these conceptual principles, Schlesinger (2009, p. 83) points out that creative industries base themselves on the individual
creations to generate products protected by intellectual property, in order to create wealth and employment, representing a rupture
with cultural industries, since they put creativity over culture. erefore, culture is marketed in a way that ideological and economic
interests are put rst as a form of power (Bustamante, 2011). However, beyond observing a rupture between cultural industries
and creative industries, we could recognize a mutual symbiosis, as put in a document from 1988 by the Department for Culture,
Media and Sport of the United Kingdom. In this case, advertising, architecture, arts and antiques, design, fashion, lms and video,
interactive entertainment software, music, performing arts, publishing houses, software and videogames, television and radio, are
considered part of the creative industries.
It is important to point out that this “symbiosis between cultural industries and creative industries” is under discussion, since, as
Castro indicates (2016), there are dierent classication models for the creative industries: 1. e United Kingdom Model; 2. e
Symbolic Texts Model; 3. e Concentric Circles Model; 4. e Copyright Model from the World Intellectual Property Organization;
5. e UNESCO Model; 6. e Model from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). In most of
these classications the videogame industry is present, evidencing its strategic importance in economical and intellectual property
terms. Nevertheless, the mercantile signicance of videogames, proposed by the perspective of creative industries, poses the risk of
limiting the possibility of cultural interactions with greater diversity.
3. Cultural industries in the digital convergence
Digital convergence has divided cultural industries in three levels, as mentioned before, according to what was proposed by
Murdock (2000), by pointing out that a cultural convergence, a communication systems convergence and a corporate convergence
has developed. In this case, these three levels have specic characteristics:
3.1. Cultural convergence
In the case of cultural convergence, the transformations in the cultural industries are related to the changes in daily routines and
experiences. erefore, there is a recomposition of the cultural activities and expressions in which producers and consumers
participate and interact in dierent forms through digital devices (Murdock 2000). It is important to point out that these human
practices and interactions are not developed in a compulsory manner from the perspective of the technological determinism, since
in these processes the users have the possibility of modifying and altering the programming of a device or application (Hutchby,
2001). In this case, technologies by themselves do not determine social transformations, even though it is important to indicate that
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they have the possibility of imposing certain conditions, but in the end the ones responsible of dening the use and application of
this technologies are the users themselves.
[...] technology is not only received, but socially dened through a process of adoption, and eventually integrated in the new collective
and institutional practices (Karaganis, 2007, p. 9).
At a certain point, users have the possibility of making exchanges and connections between the content from the media, which can
incentivize the creation of content by the users (Jenkins, 2006; Prado, 2008-2009). Hence, the process of cultural convergence has
modied the consumption relations for the cultural industries, by integrating in an application text, audio and video, as it happens
today with the content in the press, television, radio and lms.
In the case of videogames, users perform a series of appropriation practices by storing, organizing or personalizing (Schäfer, 2009),
which, at the same time, sets new relations between videogame products and users. One of the most representative historical
moments for the new relations of cultural convergence was the launch –in 2016– of the augmented reality videogame
Pokémon
Go
, in which the player used his mobile phone to move in dierent geographical locations, from a city, for example, in order to
participate and interact with the game establishing a series of dierent cultural experiences and interactions (Tulloch & Johnson,
2022).
3.2. Communication systems convergence
Regarding photography, lms, telephones, radio, and television, the broadcasting and reproduction characteristics originally relied
on analogical systems that needed a physical support, such as celluloid lm or photographic paper, in order to print the negatives.
However, with the transformation of the content and information such as text, music, images, etcetera, in digital data, they all had
the chance to converge in a single device, such as a mobile phone. In consequence, communication systems convergence implies
the union of telephone, television and computer through dierent platforms in order to transport a series of services and content
through devices with multiple functions (Comisión Europea, 1997, p. 7).
Also, the transition from telephone cables lines to an optic ber system, allowed the broadcasting of digital data by means of
a mobile telephone that can use Internet to download images and audio, as well as other types of broadcasts. In line with this
analysis, in regards to the evolution of the consoles to videogame platforms, a series of transformations have been developing in
the technological ecosystem, that includes the design and graphics in each game. Although, in this case, what is most important
to highlight is that the options for gaming have expanded and extended from playing with a console such as the Atari, that used
cartridges and had a sole location, to the use of an Xbox console with Internet connection, which allows interaction and a virtual
displacement to participate in games in dierent geographic locations.
3.3. Corporate convergence
e development of new distribution channels represented an important opportunity for media companies to expand their
markets, even though that, at the beginning, they mistrusted the power of computer systems, telecommunications and Internet
operators, these companies developed alliances to control content market key points, which includes rights on lms, sports and
original productions (Murdock, 2000). At this point, videogames historically represented a cultural and industrial link with lm
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productions by developing transmedia type processes (Jenkins, 2006), in which content such as
Halo
, as we mentioned before,
moves along dierent platforms as a videogame, a series, etcetera, establishing an entertainment system where content is
ubiquitous for the viewer or the player, hence creating an “intertextual commodity” (Marshall en Roig
et.al
, 2009).
From this series of processes and economic and cultural interactions, the large lm and videogame corporations create a series of
interchangeable products for every platform. ese processes are developed from the ownership of intellectual property licenses
to generate sequels, merchandising and several products around a lm, a series or a videogame, such as the now emblematic case
of
Star Wars
, from George Lucas. Vertical and horizontal integrations have allowed and ensured the control of the investment and
distribution channels for a greater eciency and eectiveness, by facilitating the transit of content that can move from a PC to a
console, and then into a mobile phone (Kerr, 2006: 47).
From the above, it can be inferred a redenition of cultural industries in a context of digital convergence, where a series of changes
have developed, including the evolution of the Internet, the liberalization of regulations and markets for the media, as well as the
nancing and investment in the elds of culture and information. erefore, the intention is to identify some of the dominant forces
in the videogame industry, that dene the production and technological innovation processes, as well as consumption cycles
(Dyer & Sharman, 2005). To perform this task, the Miège Model (2011) was used as a methodological framework, for the theoretical
revision and discussion in this work regarding the main transformations of the cultural industries in the digital convergence:
1) Globalization and expansion of consumer markets for culture and information; 2) Increase of communications industries
over content industries; 3) Power of information and communications technology over cultural and informational practices; 4)
Preservation of content industries, with the presence of common characteristics between industries; 5) Growing problems and
pressures faced by social agents, producers and, particularly, artists inside the dierent branches of the information and cultural
industries.
4. Methodology
From the framework proposed by Miège (2011), a series of variables are evidenced, that inuence the constant and permanent
expansion of videogame consumption. For instance, there is a growth in the collectible sector surrounding the dierent videogame
franchises, related with the marketing of action gures, trading cards, comics and graphic novels (Zandt, 2022). In this line, the
information and communications technologies developed by
hardware
and
software
producers, telecommunications and
telephone operators, etcetera, consolidate their power. e implications in this expansion processes suggest that the produced
and consumed cultural goods, are originated by the same technological companies, redening business models and extending the
commercial and operational power from the development of technology and content.
In this case, the content is fundamental to position companies such as Microsoft and Apple, that are involved in the music, lm,
and, of course, videogame industry. It should be noted that these processes have and inuence in the consumption and generate
dierent forms of interaction that transform cultural practices. Particularly, not only the relations among the dierent cultural
industries are reinforced, but also the position of economic power from technology, telecommunications and content creation
oligopolies. In this sense, innovation and creativity are an integral part of this companies, in order to maintain a market dominance
by means of the concentration in the development and promotions of contents of any kind. Lastly, but not least important: from
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this capitalist context a series of pressures upon the creation and production are generated, worsening the conditions for cultural
and creative workers.
Consequently, a documentary, descriptive study, is presented; this kind of studies are characterized by “the review of documents,
which constitute the primary analysis unit” (Corbetta, 2007). Based on user consumption and market trends statistics (Statista,
2022), as well as nancial reports by the industry itself (Nintendo Co, 2022, Sony Interactive Entertainment, 2022; Microsoft Co,
2022), a political economy is built for the processes of concentration and integration in the videogame industry, in the context of
their transformations due to the digital convergence.
5. Results and discussion
One of the rst observations to stand out here are the strategies employed by the large videogame corporations to reach their current
revenue levels. For instance, one of such tactics is the purchase of animation studios and set them up to develop and produce
videogames to be marketed. is kind of actions allow companies such as
Tencent
to increase the content generation, without fully
assuming the risks (Simon, 2021). In this way, they develop very eective monetization processes, by oering dierent forms to
acquire or participate in a videogame (physical copies, online, subscriptions, etcetera). One of such cases could be observed on
January 18, 2022; on this date, Microsoft announced the purchase of Activision Blizzard by 68.700 million dollars, a process that is
foreseen to be completed before June 30, 2023 (Zandt, 2022).
Figure 1. Number of Studies owned by videogame companies
3. Resultados y discusión
Una de las primeras observaciones a resaltar es el tema relacionado
con
las estrategias que
los grandes corporativos de videojuegos han empleado para alcanzar los niveles de ingresos
que tienen en la actualidad. Por ejemplo, una de estas tácticas es la
compra
de estudios de
animación para que
sirvan
como empresas maquiladoras con la función de
desarrollar
y
producir
videojuegos para ser
comercializados.
Este tipo de
acciones
les permiten a empresas
como
Tencent
incrementar la
genera
ción de
contenidos
, pero sin asumir totalmente los
riesgos
(Simon, 2021). De esta manera, logran desarrollar procesos de monetización muy
efectivos al desarrollar diferentes posibilidades para adquirir o participar en un videojuego
(soporte físico, en línea, suscripción, etc.). Uno de estos casos se observó el 18 de enero de
2022
, fecha en que Microsoft anunció la compra de Activision Blizzard por 68.700 millones
de dólares, proceso que se prevé concluya antes del 30 de junio de 2023 (Zandt, 2022).
Figura 1
.
Número de estudios propiedad de las compañías de videojuegos
Fuente:
https://www.statista.com/chart/26756/number-of-first-party-studios-owned-by-
selected-public-video-game-companies/
Ahora bien, esta estrategia relacionada con la adquisición de estudios para desarrollar
videojuegos por parte de los grandes corporativos, tiene entre sus objetivos primordiales la
intención de posicionar a las diferentes consolas. En este caso, la prioridad en la venta de
tecnología se basa en el desarrollo y adquisición de contenidos que incrementen el valor de
la marca, por lo que se confirma un dominio y control de las empresas de videojuegos sobre
el desarrollo de contenidos para comercializar sus consolas y todos los servicios que se
puedan incluir alrededor de una franquicia. A este respecto, en la Figura 2 se observa el
dominio en la venta de consolas por parte de Microsoft, Nintendo y Sony, lo que
demuestra
que se están definiendo ciertos hábitos de consumo que inciden en las prácticas culturales
cotidianas.
M
ás allá de los ingresos millonarios de estas empresas, ahora más que nunca se
observa la generación de fenómenos culturales de corte transmedia relacionados con el
fandom, el cosplay, etc. De esta forma, los aficionados
de
un videojuego participan de
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Source:
https://www.statista.com/chart/26756/number-of-rst-party-studios-owned-by-selected-public-video-game-companies/
<p>[Enlace de URL / hc (has AS)]</p>
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Now, the strategy, by large corporations, of acquiring studios to develop videogames, has among its main objectives the intention
to position the dierent consoles. In this case, technology sales priority is based in the development and acquisition of content
that increase the brand value, which conrms a domain and control of videogame companies over the content development to
market their consoles and all services surrounding a franchise. On this regard, in Figure 2 can be observed the domain in the sale
of consoles by Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony, which proves that certain consumption habits being dened, have an inuence in
everyday cultural practices. Beyond the large revenues of this companies can be observed, now more than ever, the generation of
cultural phenomena of the transmedia type, related with fandom, cosplay, etcetera. In this form, fans of a videogame participate in
dierent ways to add value to franchises that range from
Halo
to
Mario Bros.
In this sense, since there is a domain, by a few companies, in the production of consoles available in the market, consumption
processes are developed, that establish a series of hegemonies limitating the options for a wider cultural diversity. To highlight
these changes and reassert the prevalence of some of this franchises, it is presented bellow some data regarding the games with
higher sales for each console, rearming the position of power of some videogames in the cultural practices of the users.
In the case of the X-Box, the videogame with highest sales for this console is Grand eft Auto V (Clement, 2021), that establishes
a series of interactions expressed though user experiences with the narrative content of the story (Murphy, 2016). Additionally,
some of the historically bestselling and most representative games of Nintendo, such as e Legend of Zelda, Mario Bros., and
Pokémon (Statista, 2022), represent for many gamers a meaningful part of their personal life experiences (Cu, 2017), something
that Nintendo takes advantage of, by using fan nostalgia and establishing marketing strategies to keep the loyalty of the players,
oering them the option of an extended access to this games in an exclusive manner through consoles such as the Nintendo Switch.
Finally, regarding the PlayStation 4 console, in 2021 the biggest selling games were Spider-Man and Gods of War (Clement, 2022),
hence demonstrating that the success of world renowned franchises, represents the continuity of a cultural hegemony integrated
by experiences, beliefs, values, goals, feelings and attitudes (Gee, 2008), that permanently extend their domain to every market,
restricting the possibilities for a greater diversity and plurality.
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283
Figure 2. Global console active installed base from Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony
exclusive
manner
through
consoles
such
as
the
Nintendo
Switch.
Finally,
regarding
the
PlayStation
4
console,
in
2021
the
biggest
selling
games
were
Spider-Man
and
Gods
of
War
(Clement,
2022),
hence
demonstrating
that
the
success
of
world
renowned
franchises,
represents
the
continuity
of
a
cultural
hegemony
integrated
by
experiences,
beliefs,
values,
goals,
feelings
and
attitudes
(Gee,
2008),
that
permanently
extend
their
domain
to
every
market,
restricting
the
possibilities
for
a
greater
diversity
and
plurality.
Figure
2.
Global
console
active
installed
base
from
Microsoft,
Nintendo
and
Sony
Source:
Nintendo
Co
(2022).
Financial
Results
Explanatory
Material.
https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2022/220203_3e.pdf
Sony
Interactive
Entertainment
(2022).
Business
Data
&
Sales.
https://www.sie.com/en/corporate/data.html
Microsoft
Co
(2022)
Earnings
Release.
Balance
Sheet.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-
us/Investor/earnings/FY-2022-Q1/balance-sheets
From
Figure
3,
it
can
be
observed
a
sustained
growth
in
sales
for
the
main
videogame
companies.
This
includes
a
series
of
variables
related
with
this
increase,
among
which
stands
out
the
effect
of
Covid
19
pandemic
(Portafolio,
2020).
Additionally,
another
element
to
highlight
in
this
process
is
the
intensive
use
of
mobile
phones
in
gaming
(Clement,
2021).
In
this
case,
technological
companies
developing
telephones
establish
synergies
with
mobile
phone
operators
to
increase
bandwidth
and
offer
a
diversity
of
services
that
include
videogames.
In
this
context,
there
is
an
integration
process
between
technology
corporations
that
redefines
the
structure
and
operation
of
cultural
industries.
Hence,
as
Miège
points
out
(2011),
these
processes
impact
in
a
series
of
social,
economic,
technological
and
cultural
transformations
based
on
the
digital
convergence;
such
transformations
consolidate
a
series
of
mutations
based
on:
1)
Concentration;
2)
Regulation
adjustments;
3)
Individualization
and
differentiation;
4)
Convergence
and
homogenization.
276,629
219,66
687,6
0100200300400500600700800
Microsoft Xbox: 360, One, Series X
Nintendo: Wii, Wii U, Switch, OLED, Lite
Sony PlayStation: 3,4, 5, PSP
Millions of units of hardware sold worldwide
Source: Nintendo Co (2022). Financial Results Explanatory Material.
https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2022/220203_3e.pdf
Sony Interactive Entertainment (2022). Business Data & Sales.
https://www.sie.com/en/corporate/data.html
Microsoft Co (2022) Earnings Release. Balance Sheet.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/Investor/earnings/FY-2022-Q1/balance-sheets
From Figure 3, it can be observed a sustained growth in sales for the main videogame companies. is includes a series of variables
related with this increase, among which stands out the eect of Covid 19 pandemic (Portafolio, 2020). Additionally, another
element to highlight in this process is the intensive use of mobile phones in gaming (Clement, 2021). In this case, technological
companies developing telephones establish synergies with mobile phone operators to increase bandwidth and oer a diversity of
services that include videogames. In this context, there is an integration process between technology corporations that redenes
the structure and operation of cultural industries. Hence, as Miège points out (2011), these processes impact in a series of social,
economic, technological and cultural transformations based on the digital convergence; such transformations consolidate a series
of mutations based on: 1) Concentration; 2) Regulation adjustments; 3) Individualization and dierentiation; 4) Convergence and
homogenization.
<p>[Enlace de URL / hc (has AS)]</p>
<p>[Enlace de URL / hc (has AS)]</p>
<p>[Enlace de URL / hc (has AS)]</p>
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doxa.comunicación
Figure 3. Net sales (in millions of dollars)
A partir de la Figura 3 se observa un crecimiento sostenido en las ventas de las principales
empresas de videojuegos
.
Esto
incluye
una serie de variables relacionadas con e
ste
incremento
, donde
destaca
el efecto de la pandemia de Covid 19 (Portafolio, 2020). Por otra
parte,
un
elemento a destacar en este proceso es el uso intensivo del teléfono móvil para jugar
(Clement, 2021). En este caso, las empresas tecnológicas que desarrollan teléfonos
establecen
sinergias con los operadores de telefonía móvil para incrementar los anchos de
banda y ofrecer una
diver
sidad de servicios que incluyen los videojuegos. En este contexto,
existe un proceso de integración entre corporativos de tecnología que redefine la estructura
y el funcionamiento de las industrias culturales. Por lo tanto, como señala Miège (2011) estos
p
rocesos inciden en una serie de transformaciones sociales, económicas, tecnológicas y
culturales basadas en la convergencia digital, las cuales
consolidan
una serie de mutaciones
basadas en
:
1) Concentración; 2) Ajustes regulatorios; 3) Individualización y diferenciación;
4) Convergencia y homogeneización.
Figura 3
.
Ventas netas (
e
n millones de dólares)
Fuente:
Sony Interactive Entertainment (2022). Business Data & Sales.
https://www.sie.com/en/corporate/data.html
Nintendo Co (2022). Financial Results Explanatory Material.
https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2022/220203_3e.pdf
Microsoft Co (2022). Earnings Release. Balance Sheet.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-
us/Investor/earnings/FY-2022-Q1/balance-sheets
A partir de lo expuesto, se confirma que existen una serie de procesos de conc
entración
en el
caso de la industria de lo videojuegos, que de acuerdo con Kerr (2006) se definen de la
siguiente manera: 1) Concentración del mercado. Monopolios y oligopolios. 2) Modelo de
ingresos. Ventas en comercios, en línea, suscripciones, acceso gratuito, publicidad. 3) Nivel
de apertura del
Hadware
. Abierto, mixto, cerrado. 4) Características del proceso de software.
Costo, extensión, tamaño.
$6.759,82
$5.550,00
$4.581,00
$4.464,00
$4.366,00
$9.959,00
$10.914,00
$12.115,00
$15.990,00
$2.640,00
$6.240,00
$2.450,00
$2.660,00
$6.630,00
$8.060,00
$7.780,00
$9.160,00
$9.100,00
$11.551,00
$11.005,00
$11.000,00
$15.100,00
$0,00
$2.000,00
$4.000,00
$6.000,00
$8.000,00
$10.000,00
$12.000,00
$14.000,00
$16.000,00
$18.000,00
201320142015201620172018201920202021
Nintendo
Sony PlayStation
Microsoft Xbox
Comentado [L7]:
DĞũŽƌĂƌ ƌĞĚĂĐĐŝſŶ
Source: Sony Interactive Entertainment (2022). Business Data & Sales.
https://www.sie.com/en/corporate/data.html
Nintendo Co (2022). Financial Results Explanatory Material.
https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2022/220203_3e.pdf
Microsoft Co (2022). Earnings Release. Balance Sheet.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/Investor/earnings/FY-2022-Q1/balance-sheets
Based on what is stated above, there is a conrmation on the existence of a series of concentration processes in the case of the
videogame industry that, according to Kerr (2006), can be dened as follows: 1) Market concentration. Monopolies and oligopolies.
2) Revenue model. Retail and online sales, subscriptions, free access, advertising. 3) Level of openness in hardware. Open, mixed,
closed. 4) Characteristics of software process. Cost, extension, size.
On the rst item, regarding the videogame market concentration, in 2018 the Chinese company Tencent obtained revenues for over
20 billion dollars, during a year in which also companies such as Sony, Microsoft, Apple, Activision Blizzard, Google, Electronic
Arts, and Nintendo, consolidated as the most important in dominance and concentration of the videogame business to this date
(Armstrong, 2019). Microsoft, for instance, is in charge of every stage in the production of its games, but also of the subscription,
payment and downloading required to play. In this case, a dominion on the videogame franchises is established by the developers
and exploitation rights proprietary companies, from the acquisition of studios as the main asset tasked with the development and
production of content.
Secondly, the strengthening of the economic power for these companies is based on their business model, represented by a variety
of advertising and distribution strategies that include free downloads or the payment of a rate though platforms such as Apple,
Google Play, PlayStation, Xbox. Also, there is an increase in subscriptions through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other social
networks (Clement, 2022).
irdly, the hardware -represented by the videogame consoles- has decreased, since it has been replaced by mobile phones as the
preferred gaming device. On this last point, related to software, during 2017, in the United States, revenues associated with this
subsector increased to 29 billion dollars, representing an 80% contribution to the revenues of the United States industry, which in
<p>[Enlace de URL / hc (has AS)]</p>
<p>[Enlace de URL / hc (has AS)]</p>
<p>[Enlace de URL / hc (has AS)]</p>
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total obtained 36 billion dollars during the same year (Richter, 2018). In this case, software represents a fundamental value since it
contains the architecture on which the videogame technological features are based (Srinivasan & Venkatraman, 2020).
Lastly, it is also possible to point out that this series of mutations and transformations experienced by the videogame industry has
consolidated it as a cultural industry, but also, at the same time, as a creative industry characterized and based on industrialization
processes that have a wide economical contribution from creative developments and innovation. In this case, it is important to
highlight that this processes are not free from tensions between cultural and creative perspectives, even though, from a theoretical
standpoint, videogame developing companies also create and produce symbolic content, as pointed out by Kerr (2017: 179).
Hence, videogames represent a creative and cultural industry in which, from the production of content, advertising strategies are
stablished to sale and distribute in dierent global markets, transforming its products in consumer goods.
6. Conclusions
From the mutations of cultural industries proposed by Miège (2011), it is possible to point out that the expansion of the videogame
industry is reaching a level of global hegemony, in economic and technological terms, on the sector of cultural industries. is
prevalence of videogames in the consumption habits establishes new agencies (Giddens, 1986), which in turn inuences the
cultural and social structures, which are exposed to a corporate power that denes, at the same time, the symbolic universes from
a capitalist standpoint (Murdock, 1997). In this case, following on Zallo (1988), cultural industries are conformed by commodities
with symbolic content with a purpose of “social and ideological reproduction.”
e annual growth in the revenues of videogame companies, besides being an example of market concentration, represents a risk
for the diversity of cultural production, since they redene the operational structure of conglomerates. As has been exposed, large
corporations acquire a series of studios to produce content and oer consoles, services and applications for the users. At the same
time, they participate in a direct manner in the production of movies and series from their franchises, to be distributed through
the dierent streaming platforms. erefore, it is evident that technological corporations are redening cultural practices from
consumption strategies based on intensive marketing, in which content is vital to keep the capital ux.
In this case, the conceptual relation is maintained in a constant evolution in which, simultaneously, a series of interactions from
the market rules are increased, in order to market musical, audiovisual, editorial content, among others, in a dierent time and
space. In this way, they are continuously and permanently characterized by their development from three key elements: 1) Creative
work value; 2) Constant production renovation; 3) Unpredictable and variable demand.
In this context, one of the pending issues to be researched upon in this topic is related with the need to deepen the analysis on the
pressures to which are exposed the producers and artists working in the videogame industry. Particularly, it is necessary to identify
their working conditions and the possible disparities and inequities arising from their activity (Tremblay, 2011).
Finally, taking into account the propositions by Carrillo (2015), the research agenda for a creative and cultural industry, such as
the videogames one, should include research on cultural practices in a digital environment and its impact and interactions in the
social networks among the communities of gamers. Also, the case of the e-sports deserves a more dedicated approach, in order to
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identify no just the variable of sporting event and show that they represent, but also as a part of the videogame industry with very
specic characteristics, which could develop new agencies.
7. Acknowledgments
is article has been translated into English by Efrén David Brande Martínez, to whom I thank for his work.
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